2016 Fall Mining

MINING F 2016 E ALL

Newmont Mining operations and projects ready for the long haul.

DITION

October 2016

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On the cover —

MINING FALL 2016 a publication of Winnemucca Publishing General Manager: Holly Rudy-James

Twin Creeks Mega Pit at nighttime. The Mega Pit’s ore is processed at the Sage Mill. Twin Creeks is one of Newmont’s many successful mines in Northern Nevada looking forward to a steady future in mining.

CONTENTS

Cover Story

Newmont shows steady growth with Long Canyon Story by Joyce Sheen

Page 4

Silver Standard increases safety with radar technology at Marigold Story by Aly Guaman with photos by Michael Michaelsen Page 9 An overview of mining in Nevada Story by Dana Bennett, President of the Nevada Mining Association

Page 13

Florida Canyon Mine expansion underway Story by Debra Reid

Page 17

A brief history of Marigold’s Section 19 Story by Cheryl Upshaw

Page 20

Turquoise Ridge teams up with library for 3D Printing Project Profile by Cheryl Upshaw

Page 24

Mining History: Rochester remembered Story by Peggy Jones

Page 26

Women in Mining Story by Dana Bennett, President of the Nevada Mining Association

Page 32

2016 Safety Awards Press Release from Nevada Mining Association

Page 32

Turquoise Ridge celebrates three years with no lost time Story by Cheryl Upshaw

Page 34

Pershing Gold finds promise in Relief Canyon drill program Press Release from Pershing Gold Corporation

Page 35

Barrick safety and rescue workers build skills at Global Mine Rescue Summit Press Release from Barrick Page 38

Project Coordinator: Samantha Stine Writers: Joyce Sheen Cheryl Upshaw Debra Reid Peggy Jones Aly Guaman Dana Bennett Advertising Sales: Rhonda Coleman Amy Quiring Advertising Design: Joe Plummer Emily Swindle

1022 S. Grass Valley Road, Winnemucca, Nev. 89445 (775) 623-5011 • (866) 644-5011

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 3

Left to right: Gary Dowdle, Newmont Interim Regional Senior Vice President, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, Gary Goldberg, Newmont President and CEO, and Long Canyon General Manager Gordon Mountford performing the ribbon-cutting Sept. 28, at Long Canyon

Newmont shows steady growth with Long Canyon

Active for 95 years, in business for the long haul

By Joyce Sheen | Winnemucca Publishing

Newest project Long Canyon

Many eyes in the state were turned toward Newmont’s Long Canyon project in Elko County the last week of September. Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and a whole slate of other state and local dignitaries joined Newmont’s President and CEO Gary Goldberg in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the company’s brand new Long Canyon Mine. The project is a multi-million ounce, high-grade oxide, open-pit deposit. Long Canyon will benefit from the experience and operating synergies available from Newmont’s already successful properties in northern Nevada.

Long Canyon’s work force already includes some long-term Newmont employees who transferred from other sites to bring their expertise and experience to contribute to the new mine.

A new mine, offering employment opportunities for some 260 full-time employees, is very big news for nearby

communities of Wells and Wendover as well as Elko. Tax revenue from the new mine will flow into Elko County as well as the state.

Long Canyon started construction about two years ago. Environmental studies had been going on for at least three years before that. Fronteer Gold actually did the exploration that successfully located the resource at the Long Canyon property. Newmont bought Long Canyon from Fronteer Gold in 2011.

It is the only significant major gold discovery in Nevada in the last decade, and a limit to the resource has not yet been found.

Even though the ribbon-cutting ceremony has already been performed, Long Canyon’s construction is just about 90 percent complete. Ore is already being mined and stacked on the leach pad, but there are still some office structures and infrastructure around the warehouses going up.

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“The two communities are excited about having us,” said Mark Evatz, who manages a Humboldt County Newmont project, Twin Creeks mine. “Newmont is providing bus transportation from the nearby communities to the mine site. It’s a very easy commute on Interstate 80 with only about three miles of dirt road from the Interstate to the mine site. It’s a good trip” “We’re pretty spoiled in northern Nevada in terms of commuting,” Evatz commented. “We’re able to ride on the interstate and highway almost up to the mine sites.”

That is true for Newmont’s other mining properties in Humboldt, Lander, and Elko Counties. That fact allows Newmont employees more free rein to decide where they’d like to live.

About half of the employees at Phoenix live in Winnemucca, the other half live in the Battle Mountain area. Most of the Twin Creeks employees live >>

in Winnemucca, but some live in Battle Mountain. The Long Canyon employees will choose between Wells and Wendover as well as other locations such as Elko and Spring Creek. From Elko, the commute to Long Canyon will be just over an hour, the mine site is 25 minutes from Wells, and about 25 minutes from Wendover.

Newmont’s current mine life projection for Long Canyon is seven to 10 years. It is the newest project for a company that’s been in business over 95 years.

No more boom and bust

Newmont mining company is a prime example of sustainable mining in Nevada. Evatz said the company appreciates the opportunity to talk about its operations in the communities where Newmont’s mining properties are located and where their employees live.

“We realize we serve as

a catalyst for local economic development and we try to let people know what’s going on within our organization.”

Evatz said.

The company’s northern Nevada operations have the greatest direct effect on the communities of Winnemucca, Battle Mountain, and Elko, but Newmont’s world-wide reach increases its stability.

Bigger isn’t always better, but being a global presence with extensive operations gives the company flexibility it would not otherwise have. Newmont’s size and multiple locations around the world make it possible to leverage business opportunities.

Each property has the potential of contributing to the success of other properties.

Evatz said Newmont counts on personnel at each property to contribute ideas toward better operation.

“Because of the >>

Newmont President and CEO Gary Goldberg (right) toured the Twin Creeks mine site in Humboldt County on Sept. 29, the day after the Long Canyon ribbon-cutting. At his side in the orange vest is Mark Jones, Twin Creeks Mine geotechnical engineer.

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Twin Creeks Vista Pit (in the foreground) and processing facility.

opportunities we have around the world — when one property finds a better way to do something that’s key to the operation — we can often incorporate that idea at other properties. Sharing valuable new ideas related to our environmental work, safety, or production can benefit all the properties under the Newmont umbrella.”

Resources: people

The company counts its people as a resource as important as the gold and other precious metals found in its mines, according to Evatz. Worldwide, there are some 28,000 employees and contract partners who come under that Newmont

umbrella.

“That’s 28,000 people thinking and working on a better way to do the job every day,” Evatz said. “If we can take advantage of that brainpower and ingenuity, imagine what the end-game could be.”

It’s a concept Evatz takes the time to share with those he works with at Twin Creeks. “Twin Creeks mine has 480 employees,” Evatz said. “At the end of each year we tell the employees — that amounts to 480 years more experience for this company. Each of them has another year’s experience and it works to our benefit. It’s a simple concept and they get it.

6 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Everyone has a role to play and they can see what’s in it for them — a good job with steady, long-term employment, great benefits, and a good working environment where they’re safe.”

It is a message that means something to the mine’s employees.

“Twin Creeks mine site has been in operation for nearly 30 years and we are starting to see second and third generation Twin Creeks employees,” Evatz said.

“Grandpa worked out here, mom or dad still work here and now the son or daughter has a job at the mine.

Scholarships and summer jobs offered to employees’ children also contribute >>

An aerial photograph of the Phoenix Mine site in Lander County.

About half of those who work at the Phoenix Mine live in Winnemucca, half in Battle Mountain.

to the pipeline bringing some of the next generation back for job opportunities.

Evatz shared a story about a mining engineering student from the Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering at UNR. The student had a summer internship at Twin Creeks, helping with the Vista underground study for a project the company hopes to build next year, providing it successfully progresses through the investment and feasibility study process.

After the summer internship, the student sent a thank you letter expressing his appreciation for what it meant to him, at the start of his career, to be part of such a project.

He appreciated the amount of time everyone at the site took to include him. He said he learned so much about communications, interacting with all the different functions at the site, seeing how foundational safety is at the mine, and how important interactions with the community are in growing the business.

Evatz forwarded the letter to Newmont’s executive vice president of human resources to show the positive impact of the company’s summer intern

program.

Resources: gold and copper

Newmont’s people represent one kind of resource, precious metals represent another kind.

Newmont Mining Corporation has multiple Nevada properties, including those along the Carlin Trend in Elko County, where the company has been pouring gold for over 50 years.

Newmont’s Phoenix mine, which produces both gold and copper, is in Lander County.

Phoenix increased copper production a couple of years ago with a very successful copper leach project.

Lone Tree — with the Brooks expansion and Twin Creeks Mines — are the company’s operations within Humboldt County. Not a great deal is going on at Lone Tree now, but nearby, at the Brooks site, mining is going on at that small heap leach property. The ore is being hauled to the Lone Tree leach pad for processing.

The Brooks site is managed in concert with the Phoenix site, Evatz said. They share resources including manpower and equipment.

At the Twin Creeks mining

Newmont’s Phoenix Mine is in Lander County. This photo shows its process facility (foreground) and tailings. (background).

operation Newmont is evaluating the potential to expand into underground mining with the Vista Underground study project.

“Going underground at Twin Creeks is a first for us at that site,” Evatz said. But underground isn’t new for Newmont. The company went underground for the first time in Carlin about 20 years ago and now a large percentage of the gold mined from the Carlin area comes from underground properties.

Twin Creeks represents a large piece of Newmont’s success in Nevada, Evatz said.

“We’re having a really strong year. It is success that we can then leverage into investment into the future. When we ask the bosses for money to invest into Twin Creeks for exploration, for improving the plant and technology, the fact that we’re providing successful input financially to the overall business makes it a lot easier for them to say, ‘yes you can have the money.’”

Twin Creeks’ mine life projections are down to a point that has people “aware,” Evatz said. “But we have plans that we believe will increase mine life.”

Newmont has had success over the years in doing just that. “The initial mine life in 1987 for what is now the Twin Creeks property was seven years. In 2009, some 22 years later, the mine life was projected at six years. The company was able to add another six years, with continued processing for eight years beyond that.

“With hard work and continued dedication to successful exploration, operating productivity, cost control, and quality expansion-related studies, we hope to repeat the mining expansion cycle over many coming years,” Evatz said.

Evatz had the opportunity on Sept. 29, the day after the Long Canyon ribbon cutting, to show Company President and CEO Gary Goldberg some of the things they’re doing at the Twin Creeks site, and the Phoenix crew showed him all they are doing to improve production of both gold and copper and lower costs. Both crews emphasized all they do to work safely.

“He’s very excited about our footprint in Nevada, how well we interact in the communities and the long-standing sustainable aspect of our business in northern Nevada,” >>

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 7

Evatz said. “He enjoys coming out to the sites and seeing the properties and the people. We took advantage of having him at the site for a couple of hours to show him what we’re doing. He really enjoys the people and he asks great questions. He enjoys it when people show their passion and their contributions to the business.”

“The Twin Creeks team has done a great job year to date focusing on safe work performance and that has led to strong business performance thus far,” said Gary Dowdle, Newmont North America Interim Regional Senior Vice President, who was touring with Goldberg. “We look forward to celebrating a strong finish in safety and production at Twin Creeks and all of our operations.”

Company success = economic development

The company’s success is economic good news for the state and the counties where Newmont operates.

Newmont’s exploration drilling budget at Twin Creeks for 2016 and 2017 combined is nearly $12 million.

Newmont’s Nevada net proceeds tax payments amounted to $37.6 million in 2013, $25.7 million in 2014 and $15.2

million for 2015. Newmont paid Nevada property taxes of $12.2 million, $15.6 million and $14.3 million for the same three years. That translated to $2.6 million in Humboldt County property tax, about $4.2 million in Lander County property tax, and even though Newmont doesn’t have much property in Pershing county, however, the company did pay $16,955 in property tax in 2015.

Newmont’s net proceeds to Humboldt County totaled over $9 million last year.

Lander County received just under $1.3 million in net proceeds from the company.

Sales and use tax for Humboldt County totaled just under $7.5 million. The company’s sales and use tax in Lander County was just under that at about $7.2 million.

Newmont has joined other gold mining companies in welcoming a slight increase in gold prices. “The increase in gold price this year has put a little wind in our sails; it’s trending up some,” Evatz noted.

Since no mining company can control gold prices, Evatz said Newmont focuses on the things that can be controlled. Those things include avoiding accidents through a strong safety culture, taking care of the environment, increasing productivity and

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reducing production costs while providing a good working climate as well as offering support for employees’ families and the communities where they live.

“We compensate our people at the high end — I know that impacts the community,” Evatz said. “We’re creating wealth in the communities and I’m proud to be part of that.” He noted company efforts to assist employees in making the most of their wages with financial planning assistance, including budgeting and retirement planning.

Leaving a legacy

The company matches its employees’ contributions, through the Legacy Fund, to community not-for-profit organizations.

Over 70 percent of Newmont’s employees participate and this past year their $1.2 million donation was doubled with a $1.2 million company match. Much of the money goes directly to charitable organizations chosen by employees and some is gathered to form an endowment that can continue the Legacy Fund far into the future.

Newmont plans to be a major gold mining company in Nevada, the North American Region, and worldwide for decades to come.

MICHAEL MICHAELSEN • Special to Winnemucca Publishing

Silver Standard increases safety with radar technology at Marigold Mine

By Aly Guaman | Winnemucca Publishing

Silver Standard’s Marigold Mine is a gold mine that has been in production since 1988. The open pit mine is located in Humboldt County, south of Valmy. Marigold mines their ore by haul trucks that haul over 300-tons and by two hydraulic shovels and one electric shovel. A heapleach operation is used to process the ore.

Marigold Mine uses Safe for Life Behaviors, a fundamental part of the company’s safety program to deliver safe production every day. One of the safety factors is ground stability. Ground stability is important in mining safety because when the earth moves, it could compromise employee safety, damage equipment, and

compromise mine reserves.

For the last year, Marigold Mine has been utilizing Image By Interferometric Survey (IBIS) Radar Monitoring Capabilities to detect even the smallest slope movements in the pit mining area. The state of the art technology utilizes high-resolution radar to detect small bench scale >>

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MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 9

COURTESY PHOTO

TOP: A 3D image of the high wall at Marigold created by the new technology. The yellow box on the bottom left corner is the radar location.

The green shows slow, normal movement. The purple and red warns geologists of abnormal wall movement or failure.

RIGHT: Senior Geotechnical Geologist Julio Piñero stands at the computer in the radar’s trailer. The yellow box along the white part of the wall is the radar. Geologists can access the images like the one pictured above at the radar’s trailer and at their main work office.

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MICHAEL MICHAELSEN • Special to Winnemucca Publishing

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movements and potentially large-scale instabilities in realtime. Tom Rice, technical services manager, says the new technology provides them with a high level of comfort. “It is a safeguard for us. We can sleep better at night knowing there is continuous monitoring for movement,” said Rice.

The interferometric analysis provides data on object displacement by comparing phase information by using waves reflected from the object, in this case, high walls. Phase differences are calculated by the system and expressed as Displacement and Velocity, those values are displayed in color scales over 3D Maps. Phase differences indicate high walls movement. It covers three square miles at a distance from the high wall of 1.25 miles with 80 degrees of horizontal aperture and 60 degrees of vertical aperture. It takes less than two minutes for the radar to generate a complete high-resolution

image of the pit wall.

The radar is controlled remotely and is located in an above ground trailer, powered by four 260-watt solar panels.

It is backed up by a wind turbine and there is a third backup by battery where power can last three days without receiving any recharge. The whole system is not hooked up to any power line or gas generators, making it green, said Julio Piñero, senior geotechnical geologist. The IBIS radar is wirelessly connected to a secured private network and communicates to the Marigold Control Room where movement is monitored. The whole system is easy to move, says Piñero, “We haven’t had any downtime, and it is very reliable.”

The radar uses IBIS Guardian software to continuously monitor any high wall movements in real-time. It produces 3D imaging to a computer to easily locate any movement

MICHAEL MICHAELSEN • Special to Winnemucca Publishing

A picture of the pit wall from the angle of the new radar’s current location. The radar manages to monitor this entire area and provide movement feedback in real time to geologists.

in the pit walls. It is extremely accurate — displacement measures for all radar pixels up to 0.1 millimeters. “There was an incident on Aug. 2 where to the human eye you couldn’t see any change, but the radar alerted and we got personal

cleared out,” said Piñero. The radar can handle a harsh environment and is not affected by weather. Customizable alerts are set up on different levels to notify employees of movement and any possible dangers by pop-up alerts, email, >>

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and text. “It is nice to have these types of tools that are readily available for information,” said Rice.

Since movement can be detected at a very small level, geologists can monitor how much movement has been occurring in an amount of time to see if it poses a threat.

Inverse velocity calculations can predict in a window of time when a failure may occur.

“We watch it very closely, especially after blasting,” said Rice. When there is a threat, measures are taken to ensure the safety of employees and equipment. In case studies at Marigold, they have proven that the inverse velocity prediction works.

The investment of the radar technology cost approximately $335,000. “The peace of mind is well worth the investment,” said Rice. Other radars can range up to $600,000 to $800,000.

Marigold still utilizes their

previous monitoring equipment total station Leica TM30, a robotic survey instrument, to monitor a different area of the mine. In 2014-2015 there was a high wall section that started to move. It was monitored with the old system. Rice said they found the system to not be as accurate as the radar system because it depends on the location of the reflectors. The old system did not allow monitoring of an entire large area, the reflectors called prisms are set up to be monitored at some distance from each other which allows movement to be missed in between those locations.

Both the old and new systems are provided by the same company, Hexagon Mining.

Overall Marigold is satisfied with their investment. There is a possibility to expand operations to deepen pits in the future and get additional radars to monitor the slopes, said Piñero.

MICHAEL MICHAELSEN • Special to Winnemucca Publishing

Senior Geotechnical Geologist Julio Piñero explaining how the original monitoring equipment works. Despite having their new radar Marigold will still utilize this instrument in a different area of the mine.

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An overview of mining in Nevada

By Dana Bennett | President of the Nevada Mining Association Nevada has always been a mining state. Within our borders can be found a significant number of metals and minerals that are the building blocks for the devices that power our 21st-century lifestyle. Computer, electric vehicles, solar panels—nearly every tangible thing is constructed from various combinations of metals and minerals, which are extracted and made available by the mining industry. Throughout its history, Nevada mining’s production has been dependent on the market requirements for certain metals and minerals. Currently, Nevada’s mining industry produces 20 metals and minerals that are in demand here at home and around the world. This article will provide a brief overview of the current state of the industry in northern Nevada.

Statewide Production

According to the Nevada Division of Minerals, Nevada’s current mining production, statewide, yields barite, clays, copper, diatomite, dolomite, gold, gemstones, geothermal, gypsum, limestone, lithium, magnesium, molybdenum, oil and gas, perlite, salt, silica sand, silver, and specialty aggregates. Of all of these, Nevada’s largest output continues to be gold, and most of those producers are in the northern half of the state.

Metal Mining

Nevada has been a significant gold-mining state for over 50 years since open pit and heap leach innovations made the Carlin Trend a viable producer. In 2015, Nevada mines produced more than 5.3 million troy ounces of gold, which

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEVADA MINING ASSOCIATION

Underground machinery at work at Turquoise Ridge near Golconda.

represents over 80 percent of U.S. production. If Nevada were a country, it would be the fourth largest gold producer in the world.

As a result, Nevada’s largest export is gold. Nevada’s economic development efforts are actively engaging the state’s industries, especially in new sectors, to enhance the state’s

global impact, but Nevada’s mining industry has always been globally engaged. In the 1870s, copper ore was exported from the Battle Mountain District to Wales for processing, making it a major export for the state over 140 years ago. Now, gold is the state’s largest export.

Nevada also continues >>

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 13

to produce copper. The old Battle Mountain District is currently home to the second largest copper producer in this state, Newmont’s Phoenix Mine. The largest copper mine in Nevada continues to be the KGHM-Robinson Mine near Ely where 57,000 tons of copper were produced in 2015. But copper prices have been consistently low for the past couple of years, due to a significant reduction in global demand. Like many other mines in Nevada, both the Phoenix and Robinson also yield other products, such as gold and molybdenum, that keep these mines running.

Nevada’s nickname, The Silver State, reflects the dominance of that metal in Nevada’s mining industry 150 years ago.

Currently, silver is mostly a byproduct of northern Nevada’s gold mines. In 2015, nearly 9.5 million ounces of silver were produced in Nevada. Only one Nevada mine, Coeur Rochester near Lovelock, primarily focuses on the production of silver.

In July, Coeur Rochester received the good news that its proposed Plan of Operations amendment was approved. Over the next two decades, Coeur expects to continue mining for a time followed by periods of passive leaching and active reclamation. >>

Nevada Mining by the Numbers

Every year the Nevada Mining Association contracts with Applied Analysis, an independent research firm, to determine the industry’s impact on the State’s economy. The most recent research shows that, while the industry is still seeing economic challenges it is still strong in the state.

Education: In 2015, Nevada miners continued their strong tradition of supporting community and educational groups across the state. The industry’s charitable contributions last year totaled $15.2 million, including $1.5 million in scholarships alone.

Jobs: In 2015, Nevada’s mining industry created 28,927 jobs in the Silver State. Mine closures and project delays caused this figure to be at its lowest in five years. Nevertheless, this represents 2.3 percent of employment statewide.

Wages: Nevada mines continue to lead the state with the highest average wages of any industry. The average miner makes more than $96 thousand a year, more than double the statewide average salary of $45 thousand.

Economy: In 2015, Nevada mines generated $10.3 billion for Nevada’s economy, accounting for about 3.3 percent of the economic activity in the State.

Taxes: While the industry’s share of the state’s economy and jobs decreased in 2015, mining companies continued to support the State, paying 4.9 percent of Nevada’s general-fund taxes.

View the whole report and learn more about Nevada’s mining industry online at www.

NevadaMining.org.

14 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Future Plans

In addition to Coeur, other mines along Lovelock-Winnemucca-Battle Mountain corridor are optimistic about the future and are preparing for extensions of their operations. Coeur’s neighbor, Rye Patch Gold, received approval in August to begin construction of a new heap leach pad, which has led to a re-start of the Florida Canyon Mine and the addition of more than 130 jobs in Pershing County. Late in 2015, Newmont’s Twin Creeks Mine, near Golconda, was authorized to begin an expansion. Silver Standard’s Marigold Mine near Valmy is currently engaged in the permitting process to optimize its operations. If approved, the mine life is expected to increase by 10 years.

This area’s metal mining operations are certainly sensitive to commodity prices.

When gold and silver prices began dropping from their historic highs a few years ago, mining operations – like any business faced with revenue reductions – worked diligently to reduce the expense side of their ledgers. As these prices began ticking up again this year, Nevada miners remain optimistic about the future. A recent survey of Nevada Mining Association members found that the vast majority believe

that these prices are going to hold steady or increase in the future.

Another optimistic indicator is the growth in the number of claims staked in Nevada. In 2012, in the middle of the Great Recession and at the height of commodity prices, the number of mining claims in Nevada also reached a record high. Each year after that, however, the number of claims dropped year over year until reaching a low in 2014. It appears that a turn-around began in 2015, and the number of mining claims is currently about the same as in 2011.

Lithium Mining

Certainly, the slight increase in the price of gold has contributed to some enthusiasm in the exploration sector, but lithium is really driving the increase in claims. Nevada has the only active lithium mine in the United States, which has been operating near Silver Peak between Tonopah and Goldfield since 1966. Lithium is necessary for the batteries in smart phones, electric cars, and other modern devices, and Nevada offers the opportunity to find additional deposits. Approximately 7,000 new claims staked in Nevada can be attributed to exploration for lithium.

One of the largest lithium deposits in North America is located in Humboldt County. Lithium Nevada is currently in the process of developing that deposit, but production of the element has not yet begun.

For some Nevada mines, the main challenge is the lower prices for gold and silver. For lithium deposits, the challenge is not the product’s price, which has been skyrocketing as global demand outstrips existing supplies. For Lithium Nevada, the challenge lies in new restrictions on multiple use of federal lands.

Mining Challenges

The Federal Government’s moratorium on mining within three million acres of northern Nevada, recent wilderness withdrawals across the state, and other restrictions on access to public lands all combine to cause uncertainty for the mining industry and the communities it supports.

Withdrawing federal land from mineral entry, in particular, has future repercussions and unexpected consequences. If prospectors cannot continue to search for new deposits of minerals or metals, development cannot occur in the future. Without domestic production of >>

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 15

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEVADA MINING ASSOCIATION

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEVADA MINING ASSOCIATION

LEFT: A haul truck moving ore at Phoenix mine near Battle Mountain. RIGHT: A picture of a blast along the wall at Phoenix mine.

minerals and metals, the United States will be required to import them from unstable and unfriendly parts of the world.

In the short-term, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is contemplating a rule that would seriously constrain hard-rock mining in Nevada and the rest of the country. The State of Nevada already requires bonding to ensure that mines are closed and reclaimed properly and holds nearly $2.7 billion in operators’ financial assurances that mined areas will be made suitable for wildlife habitat, ranching, or other industrial uses in the post-mining period. But the EPA might require additional financial assurances from hard-rock mines. If this potentially duplicative rule is promulgated as it is currently understood, the effects will be substantial. Smaller operations may close, and larger operations will be curtailed.

Between low prices and uncertainty in federal regulatory requirements, Nevada’s mining industry continues to feel some stress. Another example can be found with barite, which Nevada has produced for decades. One of the primary uses of barite is in oil drilling, which has decreased

significantly over the past couple of years as oil prices have plummeted. Barite mines near Battle Mountain have reduced their operations to a fraction of where they were five years ago. Until the price of oil increases or a new use is discovered for barite, these mines are likely to stay at minimum operation.

In recent years, all of Nevada’s economic sectors have enjoyed increases in the number of jobs, except mining.

The mining industry is the only Nevada sector that has posted job losses in the past two calendar years. There is no question that Nevada’s mining industry is currently experiencing a downturn. But bright spots do exist.

Reasons for Optimism Despite these and many other challenges, Nevada remains one the best places to mine in the world. In 2015, the Fraser Institute ranked Nevada as the most attractive state in the U.S. for mining investment and number three in the world, behind only Western Australia and Saskatchewan. Investment attractiveness is determined by a combination of an area’s mineralization and policy climate.

16 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

The minerals and metals are here, and Nevada operations are proven producers. The mining industry has responded to the downturn by strategically reducing costs and planning for a future of continued challenges. Its resilience is marked by many operators’ plans for optimization and expansion in the near future.

Nevada’s mining industry is also resilient because it has continued its focus on worker safety. In 2015, over 75 percent of Nevada mines worked the entire year—24 hours a day, seven days a week—without any reportable injuries or lost time accidents. Nearly 90 percent of all Nevada mines are under the national average for reportable incidents of any kind. Recently, the Nevada Mining Association presented a number of safety awards in acknowledgement of the diligence and dedication that are necessary to ensure that miners go home to their families safe and healthy after every shift.

The Nevada Mining Association was proud to honor Mark Evatz, of Twin Creeks, as General Manager of the Year, and Lee Morrison, of Klondex, as Safety Manager of the Year.

In addition, key employees at

many of northern Nevada’s mines were honored as Safety Champions.

At the same ceremony, the Nevada Division of Minerals honored three Nevada mining companies for Excellence in Reclamation. Newmont was recognized for overall mine reclamation and wildlife habitat enhancement in an area that straddles Elko and Eureka Counties. Rye Patch Mining was honored for its reclamation design and planning at the Standard Mine in Pershing County. Jerritt Canyon Gold received an award for its innovative reclamation and closure in Elko County’s Marlboro Canyon. These awards reflect the industry’s positive and ongoing commitment to recognizing its impacts and advancing environmental enhancements that benefit the entire state.

Mining is certainly part of Nevada’s heritage, and mining is also vital to the state’s future.

As a modern industry with a strong emphasis on worksite safety and environmental mitigation, Nevada mining will continue to provide the metals and minerals necessary for the state’s growing economic sectors in advanced manufacturing and energy production.

Florida Canyon Mine expansion underway

Gold mining restart expected in early 2017

By Debra Reid | Winnemucca Publishing

After a preliminary economic assessment of the operation and acquisition of the Florida Canyon Mine in June, the Rye Patch Gold Corporation got right down to business. Construction is underway on a new heap leach pad and new processing and crusher sites that are needed before the restart of gold mining early next year.

Existing pits will be enlarged or “laid back” with explosives when mining resumes according Florida Canyon Manager Joel Murphy. The mine has been in almost continuous gold production since 1986 and there’s at least another eight years worth of gold mining already permitted at Florida Canyon “We’re getting ready to expand some of the old pits from the last 30 years,” Murphy said.

Murphy said former and new mine employees are being hired as needed as the mine ramps up for full, around-theclock mining and gold production in 2017.

“We lost a few of our good people to other mines and some are wanting to come back,” Murphy said. “We’re bringing back people every week. I think we had 12 new hires come out of our class today. Ultimately, we’ll have about 187 people. Currently, I think we have about 75 people.”

Mine Operations Superintendent Stan Green showed off the new construction as earth movers carved out a heap leach pad and a series of ponds. Top soil was removed and stockpiled nearby for future pad reclamation while new material is hauled in and leveled to support layers of the ore pile. The three ponds

DEBRA REID • Winnemucca Publishing

Florida Canyon Mine pits will be “laid back” meaning expanded during gold production. will hold the “pregnant” gold solution leached from the pad and “barren” cyanide fluid to be circulated back to the pad.

An ore crusher is being moved in from the Standard Mine for installation up the hill.

As the old heap leach pad is reclaimed, the new pad is rising to the south with room in the same direction for more already permitted heap leach pads to be installed as needed in the future, Green said.

“The new leach pad is 4,700 feet long by 2,700 feet wide,” he said. “We’ve got room for two more leach pads about the same size headed towards Lovelock and we’ll build those as we need to. This pad should last probably close to three years.”

While the mine restart seems to be happening at a high rate of speed, Rye Patch Gold US Inc. Project Manager

John Porterfield joked that it may never happen fast enough for his corporate supervisor.

“You want to call my boss right now and tell him that we’re moving because I get four or five calls a day to see how fast we’re moving,” he said. “We should start leaching in January. As far as commercial (gold) production, it will take us a few months after that so late spring, March or April at the latest.”

Weather could impact the new heap leach pad so Porterfield is hoping for a mild winter and spring.

“Water doesn’t flow when it’s frozen,” he laughed.

“Weather can affect start-ups more than a plant that’s in production. With start-ups, you don’t have the mass of heap leach pad material. Small quantities of water and piles of rock

freeze a lot quicker.”

Porterfield said Florida Canyon ore averages about one third of a gram per ton and “is about as low a grade as you can get.” However, it’s an oxide with few metallurgical issues and “good leach curves.”

“You put the cyanide solution on it, the gold comes out rather quickly. In 45 days, you get 70 plus percent of the gold,” Porterfield explained.

“Right now, the mine plan is for nine years so we’ll continue for ten years and, if nothing changes economically, there’s definitely potential after that.”

Mining will continue unless “there’s something horribly wrong with the price of gold,” he added.

“If we figure it’s going to be a long downturn then we’ll probably shut down and >>

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 17

wait until the price of gold comes back,” Porterfield said.

“We don’t foresee that now — things are pretty stable.”

Future mining technology could increase the economic benefits of other non-oxide gold resources.

“Oxide ore is the simplest to treat. Sulfide ore produces sulfuric acid so you have to treat that to neutralize it,” he explained. Mine permits are in place for the expansion of Florida Canyon.

“There’s always some permitting you have to do to sustain your operation,” Porterfield said. “There’s minor modifications, bird inventories or something to manage but the major permits are in place.”

Groundwater is not a concern now but could become an issue in the future, he said. At that point, groundwater would need to be pumped and re-injected or sent through a rapid

DEBRA REID • Winnemucca Publishing

A haul truck is loaded with base material for an ore crusher which is to be installed at Florida Canyon. infiltration system. essary to start working on an they (Rye Patch Gold) control “Our pit designs will prob- Environmental Impact State- pretty much all of the known ably go into the groundwater ment.” mineralized occurrences on at some point but that will be Rye Patch Gold’s “area of the west side of the range,” a few years down the road,” interest” includes mineral hold- Porterfield said. “We have Porterfield explained. “When ings in the West Humboldt Standard, Lincoln Hill, Wilco we start to foresee that, then Mountain Range. and the Willard Mine down we’ll do hydrology studies nec“From here to Lovelock, by Coal Canyon. Coeur >>

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18 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Years of work ahead

DEBRA REID • Winnemucca Publishing

Dust control is a constant concern during leach pad construction at Florida Canyon.

Rochester is on the east side, Pershing Gold is on the south end and Spring Valley, which is Waterton’s, is next to Coeur Rochester.”

Porterfield confirmed the mine at full production will employ up to 187 people with an average annual salary of $60,000

and $20,000 in benefits.

“With 180 people, there’s $80,000 a year going into the local economy,” he said. “Once the bond was in place, we had the legal right to start the construction and make commitments to hire people.”

During a tour of the already enormous mine pits, Green said pit walls will be drilled and blasted or “laid back” with the ore hauled crushing and processing at the new heap leach pad. Lower grade ore containing too little gold per ton will be hauled to a new waste storage facility, he said.

While some mines take years to be reactivated or to “get off the ground,” Green said Rye Patch Gold officials have taken a more aggressive, get-it-done approach to gold mining at Florida Canyon.

“Once we get our pits all opened up, we’ll start moving some ore and some waste, then we’ll go to two crews and then eventually we’ll get to three crews,” he said. “We’ll start moving dirt in November.”

If gold prices remain above the $1,000 per ounce mark, the mine could last another 30 years, he said.

“These guys took off really fast. They got their financing worked out to where we could go forward,” Green said. “The price of gold dictates everything but as long as the price stays stable, we’ll be good.”

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A brief history of Marigold’s Section 19

By Cheryl Upshaw | Winnemucca Publishing

“Take probably a six to eight year mine life to start with, and that seems to never change for us. Which is – it helps,” Duane Peck said, “We try to keep at least that out in front of us, if not a little bit more.”

Peck is the General Manager at Marigold Mine, a property near Valmy, Nevada. He describes the mine as “a little complex.” It sits in checkerboard lands, where, he says, every other property is private, and those remaining are in Bureau of Land Management control. Marigold Mine has been in operation since late 1989, though exploration activities were happening in the area for a while ahead of time.

Section 19, a small part of the mine’s Mackay Pit, was part of a larger lot that Marigold leased from Century >>

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARIGOLD

An aerial view of Marigold’s Mackay Pit, which is leased from the University of Nevada, Reno.

20 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Gold, according to Peck, in the late 1980’s. The section was gifted to the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) as an inheritance.

Though exploration on Section 19 began earlier, mining did not begin until the early 2000’s. At this point, Marigold began paying a lease to the university. Prior to this, they had paid an annual lease fee.

When gold prices rose in 2008 and 2009, Marigold was able to invest more in exploration in Section 19. For a while, Section 19 sat dormant – nearly ten years. Production began again in 2013, and continues, in phases.

The amount paid to the university is dependent on production. When the mine uses Section 19, they pay more. In 2015, this was roughly $7.5M. When the section sits dormant, they pay between $80,000 and $90,000 a year, according

to Peck.

Further, the mine works to include UNR students in the operation. “I’m a UNR grad, so I have my favorite mining school in the state, you know?” Peck said, “Actually in world – which is Mackay.”

The mine does recruit and host interns from the school, for mining and geology, as well as a number of other positions.

This partnership with UNR has allowed Marigold to invest more resources “back into the ground,” according to Peck.

Section 19, he says, represents a good portion of the mine’s reserves. These investments have included larger trucks, creating one large continuous pit, and the ability to increase production.

Section 19 has played a small but significant role in Marigold’s goal to keep that six to eight year mine life in front of them.

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An aerial view of the Marigold mining operations near Valmy.

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 21

22 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Turquoise Ridge teams up with Humboldt County Library for 3D Printing Project

Gives $2,000 donation to library

By Cheryl Upshaw | Winnemucca Publishing

For the past several months, Barrick Turquoise Ridge (TR) Gold Mine has paired with Humboldt County Library to create a 3-D printed model.

The model, printed on-site at the library, features both the mine itself and the gold ore body. After the completion of the model, the library was given a $2,000 donation from the mine.

According to Nigel Bain, TR’s general manager, the mine had first approached the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) with the project. Chief Engineer Arun Rai is a PhD candidate at the university,

where they have three 3-D printers. After several months of back-and-forth, according to Bain, Rai told the mine that it wouldn’t be possible to print the model at UNR. When the mine heard that the library had a 3-D printer, Arun and Joe Seamons, another engineer who collaborated on the project, contacted the library immediately.

The model is a 0.18 percent of the size of the mine, and is less than a foot long.

The model took four full days to complete. Joy Holt, Library Assistant Director, said that the process to print each piece of the model took hours. >>

CHERYL UPSHAW • Winnemucca Publishing

A 3-D printed model of the Barrick Turquoise Ridge Mine was created

by Humboldt County Library.

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CHERYL UPSHAW • Winnemucca Publishing

Arun Rai, Maria Anderson, Kyle Ebert, Nancy Flowers, Jessica Dyk, Dawn Ella Brouse, Elizabeth Sanchez-Scheer, Nigel Bain and Trent Weatherwax. Representatives from Barrick Turquoise Ridge presented a check to Humboldt County Library after the library helped them to create a 3-D model of the mine.

Rai explained that the portion of the mine represented by the model showed an ore body of roughly 1.1M ounces of gold.

This is not the entirety of the ore body on-site at TR, which amounts to roughly 6M ounces of gold.

There are plans to continue the proj-

ect and to print both the ore and the tunnels, in two different colors, using the machine. The ore body will be represented in gold-colored material, and the tunnels will be printed in gray. The finished model will have multiple pieces, which will eventually be connected.

“That will make the thought process easier to explain,” Rai said. Bain said that the model had shown two 15-foot areas of ore that hadn’t yet been mined, which the mine will now pursue. He also said that TR sat on a “very complicated piece of geology,” where there were a number of faults. “The faults sort of obscure things,” Bain said. The models would help to combat the confusion caused by the faults.

“We’re really thrilled to partner with you guys, and provide any services we can” Library Director Cyndi O said.

Two library employees took the lead on the project, Jessica Dyk, Library Specialist, and Kyle Ebert, Library Assistant. Dyk was instrumental in bringing the 3-D printer to the library. She convinced the previous library director to purchase one, and learned how to use it. Soon afterward, she became interested in both STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) and maker’s spaces. She has been working to integrate these concepts into library programs.

Holt says the library will use the donation to purchase more filament and >>

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other materials for the 3-D printer. She said these materials can be very expensive, and that the machine had the capability of printing in metal, wood and other materials. The library also planned to purchase a dual extruder, which would allow them to print in two colors at once, a necessary component to complete the model.

The library hosts three 3-D printing clubs. One is for kids from eight to 12

years, but younger kids are welcome with adult help. There is a teenage club for kids from 13 to 18. Finally, there’s an adult 3-D printer club. These clubs meet monthly and are open to all members of the community. “We come, we teach them how to design their own models and we let them print,” Dyk said, “That’s currently what we’re doing with our 3-D printer, but I’m sure that we’ll expand. We just barely got

the printer in July. So the fact that it’s even running right now is a miracle.”

Holt stated that there were plans to print a topographical map for Humboldt County Dispatch. The hope is that this representation would help dispatchers to visualize the landscape where they send resources. “It’ll be a much easier way for them to find those roadways that are so remote,” Holt said.

Mining History: Rochester remembered

By Peggy Jones | Winnemucca Publishing

PEGGY JONES • Winnemucca Publishing

PHOTO 1

They must have been homesick. The prospectors had chased their dreams across an untamed continent. When their visions finally panned out in a canyon thousands of miles from home, they wanted to give the place a name.

The wayfarers’ thoughts turned to their hometown in New York State. They decided to call their new home “Rochester.”

Over the years it has endured boom, bust, burning, and burial (see photo 1).

In neighboring Unionville, it’s still possible to see the ruins of the Fall Store or debate the location of Mark Twain’s cabin.

But flames consumed many of Rochester’s saloons and stores long ago (see photo 2). The deep canyon’s two mining camps had no water for firefighting. And, in the mid-nineteen-eighties Coeur Rochester buried the rest of the town beneath its tailings.

Today Coeur’s workers maneuver their vehicles through the canyon twenty-four hours a day. The crusher never sleeps. But Rochester’s ghosts slumber deeply.

Early Rochester lives in picture postcards, memoirs, and a museum exhibit.

Latter-day Rochester inhabits the mem-

PHOTO 2

PEGGY JONES • Winnemucca Publishing

PHOTO 3

ory of what may be its last surviving former resident, Bob Maher of Lovelock (see photo 3).

The early days

A vintage postcard (see photo 4) shows six men hoisting a tent on their shoulders.

26 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

In the background are dozens more canvas homes. Hundreds of prospectors would pitch tents in the canyon during its boom years (1912-1914). But a man from the Black Hills of North Dakota paved the way.

Hutchinson (‘Hutch’) Stevens set up his tent near Crown Peak and staked four claims along its outcrop. When he got hungry, he shot sage hens with his 22 gauge rifle. Many times he hunkered in the crevice of a rock, dressing his kill in snowstorms violent enough to knock a cowboy off his feet.

A couple of days a week Stevens walked toward Unionville to meet the Limerick Canyon — Spring Valley stage and stock up on provisions. He’d return to pick them up the next day. A storm was building when he joked with the driver on December 7, 1907.

When the two men parted, Stevens headed homeward. The next day the driver waited, but his friend never materialized, so he finally left the goods by the side of the road. When they were still there the next day, he got hold of the Sheriff.

Stevens was a well-connected man >>

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PHOTO 4

with a large family. The March 6, 1908, edition of the Lovelock Review-Miner reported that the first search parties failed because of heavy snowfall.

“But during the past month the weather has been warm resulting in melting snows in the mountains and a search will be made for the missing man before the rough weather sets in,” continued the writer.

The story reported the arrival of “Joe Nenzel, the mining

found him.

But during the Spring thaw, a rancher looking for stray cattle saw coyote tracks in the snow. They led to a crevice in the rocks.

A mountain lion or coyote had carted off the head long ago. And, there wasn’t much left of the body later identified as Hutchinson Stevens either.

One arm rested on a 22 caliber rifle. The remains of a sandwich stuffed his pockets.

The Sheriff was unable to

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man (see photo 5)” in American Canyon. Hutch Steven’s brothers — Peter Clair and Charles Edward came with him (see photo 6). Peter was Nenzel’s father-in-law. The trio planned to conduct a “diligent search” for the missing man.

There is no record that they

determine whether Stevens accidentally or purposely shot himself, froze to death, or was murdered.

“With the death of Stevens, a host of heirs sprang up,” reported the Nevada State Journal. “But from this point, Joe Nenzel is the central >> MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 27

he convinced a rancher friend, George Pitt, to send teams into the canyon. Pitt’s horses and mules hauled the ore to the railroad for shipment to the smelters.

The canyon’s population skyrocketed after Nenzel’s lucky strike. A Reno newspaper reported that in a single day builders put up two saloons, a restaurant, and a lodging house (see photos 7).

Nenzel’s Rochester Mines Company

PHOTO 6

figure in the destiny of Rochester camp.”

He contacted each of the 40 claimants, bought out their claims and set about earning the title, “Father of Rochester.”

Nenzel relocated the claims and struck a silver rich ledge twenty miles northeast of Lovelock in June 1912. Juniper trees were plentiful and made good sleds. Nenzel dragged the ore downhill himself until

PHOTO 7

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28 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

became the dominant mining company in the district.

In 1915, Glenn Emminger started work as an assayist for the Rochester Mines.

But in his spare time, he wrote his impressions of the boom town. Emminger’s Rochester had a railroad (see photo 8), electric power from Lake Lahontan, two telephone companies, a newspaper, two US Post Offices (see photo 9), three >>

decade ago.

Technology brought its blessings and curses to the canyon. Nenzel’s Juniper sled gave way to a collection of steam and gasoline powered locomotives - the Nevada Short Line (See photo 12). It carried ore from the base of Rochester Canyon to the mill in Oreana, four miles away.

At its height of its boom

period the canyon supported two towns- Rochester and East Rochester. A.A. Codd extended his railroad to each of them.

Codd’s Nevada Short Line started passenger service to the town of Rochester on Jan. 15, 1915. Soon it began stopping in East Rochester. Unless the engine broke down, the Short Line made two round trips daily. Breakdowns >>

PHOTO 8

grammar schools, two baseball teams, a race track, a gun club, and a cemetery. Town planners put the racetrack and gun club next to the cemetery.

After visiting Rochester in 1913, a traveler told the Nevada State Journal, “A man who had a bed, a barrel of beer and a table called his place a hotel.” The money flowed for awhile.

The Marzen House Exhibit

White canvas tents dot the hillside of Dale Darney’s scale model of Rochester circa 1916 (see photo 10). Miniaturized miners the size of fingernails burrow into the mountain. An old photo puts a face on one of them (See photo 11). The replica is the focal point of an exhibit Coeur donated to the Marzen House Museum over a

PHOTO 9

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PHOTO 10

were common. But the train in Darney’s scale model seems poised to zip down the tracks.

The railroad lasted five years despite mechanical breakdowns and financial problems.

But in 1917 an aerial tramway from Nenzel Hill to the Oreana mill reduced the train’s ore-hauling business. A year later, a June flood washed away the track.

Finally, in 1920 scrap dealers tore up the rails of the last independent railroad built in Nevada.

Latter-day Rochester

The old prospectors named Rochester after their hometown in New York State. The owner of the Buck and Charley mine memorialized his favorite horses. The mine’s main products were lead, zinc, and silver. Bob Maher, from Tacoma, Washington, was seven years old when his father, Kent, became mine superintendent in 1935. A year later the mine closed because of poor market conditions.

“Silver was $1.29 an ounce, and that was with a government subsidy,” said Maher.

“There was no market for lead or zinc so the mine couldn’t operate. My dad stayed on as caretaker and leased a small gold mine to augment his salary.”

30 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Maher recalls that by law, his father had to sell his gold to the US government at $35 an ounce. “That was Roosevelt’s manipulation of the gold standard in 1932,” he explains.

“So my father shipped whatever he recovered to the mint in San Francisco. They’d refine it and send him a check or cash by certified mail — brand new $5 and $10 bills right out of the mint.”

On weekdays Maher walked a mile from the family’s West Rochester home.

He headed for a one-roomschoolhouse that used to be a saloon.

His job was to bring the coal up from the cellar. Then the teacher could build the fire (after she finished putting up the flag).

One day a rattlesnake scuttled through the coal and surprised the boy. He alerted Gossi, and she killed it with a hoe. Then she settled the kids around the piano. “The first half-hour of the day was devoted to singing and music,” said Maher. “Pioneer women were tough.”

So were pioneer boys.

Twelve-year-old Maher had a 22 gauge rifle and slingshot. “I terrorized the Jackrabbits and lizards,” he said. “I walked to Upper Rochester and played cowboys and Indians >>

PHOTO 12

PHOTO 11

with friends. We had carbide lights and access to carbide, so we prowled old buildings and investigated abandoned mines.”

Bob went to school with his sisters, Nevada June (‘Neva’) and Irene Lee. They had four classmates. Phillip and Margaret Gossi, Phillip Ankony and Joe Wright. In 1938, Maher’s sisters were old enough to go to high school, so the family rented a house on Eighth and Grinnel Street in Lovelock where they lived during the Winter. As a testament to one-room schooling, Maher tested way above his fourthgrade level, so officials bumped him up to the fifth grade.

Life changed at the Buck and Charley Mine when the Japanese bombed the American fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. Overnight, a market opened up for its lead, zinc, and silver. The US entered WW II. “They reopened the mine, and it ran for two and a half years before it was depleted of mineable ore,” said Maher.

Just weeks after Maher graduated from PCHS in June 1945, he enlisted in the Army Reserve Corps. His travels took him to the University of Utah and then to postwar Japan. But when his enlistment ended he came back to Rochester.

“In 1947, I went to work for my dad at a mine he managed,” says Maher. “I learned underground work and how to run pneumatic drills. At the time mining was still mostly hand labor. It wasn’t mecha-

nized like nowadays.”

As a blacksmith’s apprentice Maher earned $1 an hour. The blacksmith made $1.25.

“Every mine relied upon the blacksmith because mines used a lot of drill seals and picks,” he explains. The smithy heated hot steel on the forge and pounded it into tools or other implements needed to work the mine site.

“Heated steel loses its hardness and becomes malleable,” said Maher. “So I chilled it in water to temper it. Then I reheated it to a critical point judging by the color of the steel. If it got too hot, the drill seal became brittle and could break.

But if it wasn’t hot enough the seal would be too soft. It was a question of judgment.

A good blacksmith never lets his metal get white hot.”

In 1949, Maher married a rancher’s daughter, Louise Sheppard. He was working underground at the Cordero Mine in McDermitt when she gave birth to their first son, Kent.

In 1950, the Cordero Mine closed, so the family moved to Tungsten, NV. by Mill City. They lived in a company town.

Maher worked underground mining tungsten, a mineral used to create a super-hard steel alloy for battleships and armored tanks. The Korean War had begun.

Maher started out at $1.06 per hour.

Eventually, he became the shift boss, lived in company housing and earned $600 per month. “At that time rent, water, and electric cost us $26 a month,” he says.

In 1951 Russell was born. Two years later Kathleen came along. Maher served on the Tungsten school board.

When the war ended, the mine closed down. “I was laid off on July 1, 1958,” Maher recalls.

But Eagle-Picher (EP) was building its diatomaceous earth plant in Lovelock. “I applied for a job and got on as a salaried mill foreman at $450 per month,” he says.

Maher worked for EP the next thirty years.

The company promoted him to superintendent in charge of maintenance, and then to general manager.

Five years before his retirement EP made Maher the Vice President in charge of both the mine and mill. Maher, who also served as Pershing County Commissioner for over two decades, retired from EP in 1988 with thirty years of service.

“People in Nevada had a lot of fortitude in those days,” said Maher about his years in Rochester. “We didn’t have anything, but we made out. We didn’t bemoan the fact that somebody else had more than we did; we were happy with what we had.

Everybody I knew as a kid was upbeat and optimistic. I was exposed to a lot of people in the same straits we were. We had friends in Unionville that were dirt poor too, but we all eked out a living. It was a different mindset.”

Sources: Emminger Glenn, 1965, The first hundred years, 1865-1965, University of Nevada Library, special sections.

Shamberger Hugh, 1973, Rochester: Early history, development and water supply. Prepared in conjunction with the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and U.S. Geological Survey. Lovelock Review-Miner.

Nevada State Journal. Interviews with Bob Maher.

MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 31

Women in mining

By Dana Bennett | President of the Nevada Mining Association As the first female president of the Nevada Mining Association, a statewide mining organization that has existed for more than 100 years, I am excited to take every opportunity to talk about how women are changing the landscape of Nevada’s original STEM industry.

Women are being recognized for their important contributions to mining. For example, Dana Sue Kimbal, an environmental manager at the Coeur Rochester Mine in Pershing County, was recently recognized by Kronos Incorporated’s “1 in One Hundred Million” project, a series of video biographies of people who do important, and often unrecognized, jobs across the U.S. You can find her interesting story on the website for the Nevada Mining Association and also here: http:// www.1in100million.com/.

On Sept. 24, the National Mining Hall of Fame presented its Prazen Living Legend of Mining award to the Women’s

COURTESY PHOTO

Dana Sue Kimbal

Mining Coalition for its work in educating the public and especially policymakers about the importance of the mining industry in our everyday lives.

Women are impacting every aspect of the mining industry. From mine managers to haul truck operators to geologists to metallurgical engineers and many other professions, women can be found throughout the mining industry. In Nevada, however, women still represent only a small percentage of workers in these fulfilling and well-paying careers.

One of the Nevada Mining Association’s projects this year focuses on gathering more information about women in Nevada’s mining industry and what can be done to recruit more women to consider mining as an exciting and viable career option. The Association has commissioned a study to gather this vital information and much more. We look forward to sharing the results of that study after it has been completed and analyzed.

To learn more about the Nevada Mining Association, our members, and our initiatives, please visit nevadamining.org.

2016 Mine Safety Awards Press Release from the Nevada Mining Association The NvMA is proud to announce the recipients of their 2016 Safety Awards. 67 individuals and 37 mines were honored this year for their hard work and commitment to ensuring every miner goes home safely at the end of their shift.

Awardees were recognized and received their awards on Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Nevada Mining Association’s convention at Lake Tahoe’s Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

Below are listed the recipients and the awards they were given:

Operator Awards

Surface Large — 1st Newmont USA Limited Twin Creeks Mine 2nd Round Mountain Gold Corporation Smoky Valley Common Operations 3rd Newmont USA Limited Phoenix Mine Surface Medium — 1st Barrick Goldstrike Mines Inc Roaster Operations 1st Barrick Goldstrike Mines Inc Arturo 1st Newmont USA Limited Genesis 1st Newmont USA Limited Mill 6 Surface Small — 1st Borealis Mining Company, LLC Borealis Mine 1st Comstock Mining LLC Comstock Mining LLC 1st GRP Pan LLC Pan Mine 1st Mineral Ridge Gold, LLC Mineral Ridge Mine Underground Large — 1st Barrick Turquoise Ridge, Inc. Turquoise Ridge 2nd Barrick Cortez Inc. Barrick Cortez Underground 3rd Barrick Goldstrike Mines Inc Meikle Mine Underground Medium 1st Newmont USA Limited Exodus 2nd Klondex Midas Operations, Inc. Midas Mine Underground Small — 1st Nevada Copper Inc 32 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

Pumpkin Hollow East Underground 2nd Klondex Gold and Silver Mining Co. Fire Creek 3rd Newmont USA Limited Pete Bajo Non-Metal — 1st Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations Argenta Mine And Mill 1st EP Minerals, LLC Colado Mine 1st EP Minerals, LLC Clark Mill 1st EP Minerals, LLC Fernley Operations 1st Graymont Western Us Inc Pilot Peak 1st Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. DUNPHY MILL 1st Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. Rossi Jig Plant 1st Simplot Silica Products Simplot Mill & Pit #1 Aggregate — 1st Aggregate Industries SWR, Inc. Sloan Quarry #1001 1st Ames Construction Inc. Ames Backfill Portabe Crusher 1st Granite Construction Company Lockwood Quarry Contractor — 1st American Drilling Corporation Nevada Operations 1st Ames Construction Nevada Operations 1st Brahma Group, Inc. Nevada Operations 1st J.S. Redpath Mining Raisebore Division 1st Q&D Construction, Inc. Nevada Operations 1st Schmueser & Associates Nevada Operations 1st Small Mine Development Newmont - Chukar Mine

Individual Awards

General Manager Newmont Mining Corporation Twin Creeks Mark Evatz Safety Manager Klondex Mines Ltd. Lee Morrison Safety Professional Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Kurt Parker

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEWMONT NEVADA

Newmont’s employees who earned individual awards in no particular order: General Manager Mark Evatz, Supervisor Bruce Keating, Supervisor Tony Martinez, Emergency Response Kyle Anderson and Safety Champion Ernie Hazlett.

Safety Professional Barrick Gold Corporation Turquoise Ridge Tyler Forrest Safety Professional Kinross Gold Corporation Round Mountain Jamie Willis Safety Professional Klondex Mines Ltd. Fire Creek Rob Crommelin Mine Manager American Mining & Tunneling Chris Corley Mine Manager Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Henri Gonin

Mine Manager Newmont Mining Corporation Carlin Steve Johnson Superintendent Coeur Mining Rochester Josef Bilant Superintendent KGHM Robinson John Jacobson Superintendent Kinross Gold Corporation Bald Mountain Jeremy Zeiler Superintendent Kinross Gold Corporation Round Mountain Wayne Colwell Superintendent Klondex Mines Ltd. Midas Tim Crouch General Supervisor Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Tom Knudsen General Supervisor Barrick Gold Corporation Turquoise Ridge David Westhoff General Supervisor Coeur Mining Rochester Dale Honea General Supervisor Kinross Gold Corporation Bald Mountain Jason New General Supervisor Kinross Gold Corporation Round Mountain Gary Eisenhauer General Supervisor Klondex Mines Ltd. Midas Jim Schmidt General Supervisor N.A. Degerstrom Darrell Dugan General Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Carlin Todd Fowers General Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Mill 6 Chuck Gaines General Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Phoenix Cameron Mead Trainer Coeur Mining Rochester Blair Campbell Trainer N.A. Degerstrom Carl Poston Trainer Silver Standard Resources Marigold Wayne Alexander Supervisor American Drilling Corp. Phil Cowles Supervisor Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Dusty Gilbertson Supervisor Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Kevin Hartnett Supervisor Coeur Mining Rochester Gus Duncan >>

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Supervisor KGHM Robinson Chester Gardner Supervisor Klondex Mines Ltd. Fire Creek Ray Davis Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Gold Quarry Luz Sandoval Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Genesis Michael Glasgow Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Mill 6 Jack Constable Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Phoenix Henry Dominguez Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Twin Creeks Bruce Keating Supervisor Newmont Mining Corporation Twin Creeks Tony Martinez Supervisor Silver Standard Resources Marigold Shelley Spealman Non-Supervisory Trainer Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Karen Panteleoni Non-Supervisory Trainer Coeur Mining

Rochester Earl Malay Non-Supervisory Trainer EP Minerals Lovelock Starla Gordon Non-Supervisory Trainer Kinross Gold Corporation Round Mountain Clint Willis Non-Supervisory Trainer Newmont Mining Corporation Carlin Hank Beckstead Non-Supervisory Trainer Silver Standard Resources Marigold Dean Hardman Emergency Response Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Rich Maier Emergency Response Kinross Gold Corporation Bald Mountain Diana Ramsey Emergency Response Newmont Mining Corporation Carlin Brad Nelson Emergency Response Newmont Mining Corporation Twin Creeks Kyle Anderson Emergency Response Silver Standard Resources Marigold Jerry Murphy Safety Champion Barrick Gold Corporation Cortez Lee Koch Safety Champion Barrick Gold Corporation Turquoise Ridge Drew Powell Safety Champion Coeur Mining Rochester Terry Holland Safety Champion KGHM Robinson Jeremy

Abbey Safety Champion Kinross Gold Corporation Bald Mountain Alonzo R. Crawford Safety Champion Kinross Gold Corporation Round Mountain Bill Owings Safety Champion Klondex Mines Ltd. Fire Creek Hector Dimas Safety Champion Klondex Mines Ltd. Midas Jim Keinholz Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Carlin Tyson Young Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Emigrant Morgan Gurr Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Genesis Dave Mackley Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Lone Tree Joe Rangel Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Phoenix Shelly Hillesheim Safety Champion Newmont Mining Corporation Twin Creeks Ernie Hazlett Safety Champion Silver Standard Resources Marigold Candelario Andrade Lifetime Award Small Mine Development Leslie Brooks

Turquoise Ridge celebrates three years with no lost time

By Cheryl Upshaw | Winnemucca Publishing

As of the morning of Aug. 8, Turquoise Ridge (TR) Joint Venture was proud to announce that the mine had reached its third year without any lost time accidents.

Safety and Health Superintendent Simon Pollard said this was a record for underground mines with Barrick Gold Corporation and that the accomplishment was a “testament to the quality of people we have working here at TR.” There are a number of ways that Turquoise Ridge protects its workers, but Pollard claimed that the most effective was the cultivation of a safety culture.

“There’s a real sense of family out here.

Our people aren’t just interested in taking care of themselves, they’re interested in taking care of each other,” Pollard said.

He continued on to say, “We have a site full of safety leaders. We’re not relying solely on supervision to keep things safe.

Our people have grown a commitment to doing things right and making consistently safe decisions.”

Further, Turquoise Ridge constantly trains employees to keep safety at the forefront. “They receive a lot of safety

COURTESY PHOTO

TRJV employees gather on surface to enjoy a prime rib dinner and celebrate their three year accomplishment.

training and support, so they realize their safety is up to them,” Pollard said. Turquoise Ridge miners receive training for new hires, fatigue management, specific tasks, emergency response and annually at their refresher course. The site also does a weekly “safety share” — a topic for

34 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

employees to keep in mind for that week.

The most recent safety share was to “maintain focus.” Pollard explained, “We just made this major milestone, and we’re not allowing ourselves to relax. What got us here is exactly what we need to do to get to the next milestone.”

southeast. This Phase 1 drilling should expand the PEA pit limit and expand and upgrade the inpit resource. The three Phase 1 drill holes completed to date have extended the high-grade mineralization discovered in 2014-2015 beyond the west limit of the PEA pit,” Alfers said. “The mineralization of Relief Canyon is still open, and this drilling indicates that the project should continue to get bigger and higher grade.”

Pershing Gold finds promise in Relief Canyon drill program Press Release from Pershing Gold Corporation | www.pershinggold.com

LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Pershing Gold Corporation (“Pershing Gold” or the “Company”), the emerging Nevada gold producer advancing the Relief Canyon mine, today announces initial results from Phase 1 of its 2016 Drilling Program (the “Program”).

Pershing Gold is executing a three phase drilling program for 2016-2017 designed to test opportunities identified in the Company’s recently published Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”). Phase 1 includes step-out drilling to test potential extensions of the highgrade zones at Relief Canyon discovered in the North Target Area in 2014-2015. Pershing Gold has 16 additional holes planned for Phase 1 in 2016.

Results are reported in feet (“ft”) and meters (“m”), and

Table 1 Drill Hole RC16-459 RC16-460 RC16-461 RC16-462

including including including

From

To Width feet 369 390.3 21.3 169.3 187.6 18.3 236 246 10.0 Hole abandoned prior to target 399.9 413.6 13.7 437.1 465 27.9 520.8 547.8 27.0 596.4 603.4 10.0 620.9 641.8 20.9 620.9 625.5 4.6 633.8 639.3 5.5 653.6 671.9 18.3 745.9 778.1 32.2 766.5 770.6 4.1 817.8 834.1 16.3

gpt gold 0.645 1.519 0.752

oz/ton gold 0.019 0.044 0.022

gpt silver 7.1 4.1 6.6

oz/ton silver 0.21 0.12 0.19

0.376 0.294 1.414 0.318 7.448 0.042 27.70 1.189 0.803 2.778 0.467

0.011 0.009 0.039 0.009 0.217 0.001 0.809 0.035 0.023 0.081 0.014

2.4 1.2 3.7 2.8 129 512.0 52.0 3.5 27.4 173.0 5.3

0.07 0.03 0.11 0.08 3.76 14.9 1.52 0.10 0.80 5.05 0.16

Table 1 All of the zones encountered in RC16-462 are above the sulfide boundary and are logged as oxide/mixed. Cyanide soluble gold assay results confirm the leach-ability of all intercepts. in grams per tonne (“gpt”) and “We are excited about foot step-out from previRC16-462 corroborates a northwest trend in this area for the Lower and Jasperoid Zones ounces per ton (“oz/ton”) of RC16-462 for a number of ous drilling, we have interencountered in this hole. RC16-462 should extend economic mineralization 200 feet (61 m) gold (“Au”) or silver (“Ag”). reasons. First, with a 200- sected all three zones of >> west of the currently defined pit limits. Both the Lower and Jasperoid Zones remain open for expansion and additional holes are planned in this area.

REESE RIVER OUTFITTERS

Drill holes RC16-459 and RC16-460 are part of a program to test the sulfide/mixed/oxide zone boundary of an area along the northern limits of the PEA pit wall where significant mineralization was excluded from economic contribution in the PEA due to its classification as sulfide mineralization. This program will include additional metallurgical testing of samples

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Figure 1: Plan View

36 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

mineralization known at the Relief Canyon deposit; the Main Zone, the Lower Zone and the Jasperoid Zone,” stated Stephen D. Alfers, Pershing Gold’s Chairman, President and CEO. “These three zones carry excellent grades that are more than twice the average grade of the existing Relief Canyon PEA and 43-101 resource. Finally, we believe that the mineralization encountered here is open pitable, with an overall strip ratio expected to be around 4:1.

This discovery not only brings the potential to add ounces and extend the Relief Canyon mine life, but also to further improve the overall economics of the Relief Canyon project,” said Alfers.

foot drill width.

Notable intercepts from RC16-462 include: • 27 ft (8.2 m), 1.414 gpt, 0.039 oz/ton Au • 20.9 ft (6.4 m), 7.448 gpt, 0.217 oz/ton Au • including 5.5 ft (1.7 m), 27.7 gpt, 0.809 oz/ton Au • 18.3 ft (5.6 m), 1.189 gpt, 0.035 oz/ton Au The Company believes that these drill intercepts will expand the PEA pit limit as well as the mineralized grade shells to the east and west. These zones also encounter increasing silver grades with depth, including an intercept of 20.9 feet (6.4 m) of 129 gpt, 3.759 oz/ton Ag from 620.9 to 641.8 feet (189.3 to 195.6 m) in RC16-462. All intercepts are 95-100% of true width.

Phase 1 Initial Results

“The PEA makes clear that the Relief Canyon deposit remains open to the west, south and southeast. This Phase 1 drilling should expand the PEA pit limit and expand and upgrade the in-pit resource. The three Phase 1 drill holes completed to date have extended the highgrade mineralization discovered in 2014-2015 beyond the west limit of the PEA pit,” Alfers said.

“The mineralization of Relief Canyon is still open, and this drilling indicates that the project should continue to get bigger and higher grade.”

All of the zones encountered in RC16-462 are above the sulfide boundary and are logged as oxide/mixed. Cyanide soluble gold assay results >>

Pershing Gold has received the results from the first four core drill holes from Phase 1 of its 2016 Drilling program.

Full results are listed in Table 1 below. A plan view and cross section of these drill holes are listed below in Figures 1 and 2.

The eight intercepts (Table 1) encountered in RC16-462 include all three mineral zones previously identified at Relief Canyon; the Main Zone, the Lower Zone and the Jasperoid Zone. These intercepts have a cumulative thickness of 166.3 feet (50.7m), an average grade of 1.597 gpt, 0.046 oz/ton Au, and 23.5 gpt, 0.70 oz/ton Ag, and assume a minimum ten-

processing facility. Pershing Gold is currently permitted to resume mining at Relief Canyon under the existing Plan of Operations.

Pershing Gold’s landholdings cover approximately 25,000 acres that include the Relief Canyon Mine asset and lands surrounding the mine in all directions. This land package provides Pershing Gold with the opportunity to expand the Relief Canyon Mine deposit and to explore and make new discoveries on nearby lands.

Pershing Gold is listed on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol PGLC and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol 7PG1.

Figure 2: Cross Section

confirm the leach-ability of all intercepts. RC16-462 corroborates a northwest trend in this area for the Lower and Jasperoid Zones encountered in this hole. RC16-462 should extend economic mineralization 200 feet (61 m) west of the currently defined pit limits. Both the Lower and Jasperoid Zones remain open for expansion and additional holes are planned in this area.

Drill holes RC16-459 and RC16-460 are part of a program to test the sulfide/mixed/oxide zone boundary of an area along the northern limits of the PEA pit wall where significant mineralization was excluded from economic contribution in the PEA due to its classification as sulfide mineralization. This program will

include additional metallurgical testing of samples from previous drill holes to determine if any of this material can be economically processed. The results for RC16-460 show leachable mineralization and should expand recoverable ounces. Conversely, the leach-ability test for RC16459 indicated that the mineralization is sulfide and unsuitable for heap leach processing.

RC16-459 results did not have an economic impact as this area was already excluded in the PEA.

ty, Nevada. Relief Canyon includes three open-pit mines, expanding adjacent open-pitable gold deposits, and a stateof-the-art, fully permitted and constructed heap-leach

Scientific and Technical Data

All scientific and technical information related to drill and surface samples for the Relief Canyon project has been reviewed and approved >>

About Pershing Gold Corporation

Pershing Gold is an emerging gold producer whose primary asset is the Relief Canyon Mine in Pershing Coun-

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by Larry L. Hillesland, Certified Professional Geologist #11720, who is a Qualified Person under the definitions established

by Canadian National Instrument 43-101.

Drill core at Relief Canyon is boxed and sealed at the drill rig and moved to the Relief Canyon logging and sample preparation facilities by trained personnel. The core is logged and split down the center using a typical table-fed circular rock saw.

One half of the core is sent for assay to Skyline Assayers & Laboratories of Sparks, Nevada, while the other half is returned to the core box and stored at Relief Canyon in a secure, fenced-off, area. Pershing Gold Corporation QA/QC includes the regular use of blanks, standards, and duplicate samples.

Legal Notice and Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains “for-

ward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, including plans for Phase 1 and Phase 2 of our 2016 drilling program including areas planned for drilling, initial drill and solubility test results from the Phase 1 program and the interpretation of those results as having potential to PEA pit and resource, are “forward-looking statements.” Although the Company’s management believes that such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee that such expectations are, or will be, correct. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company’s future results to differ materially from those anticipated. Potential risks and uncertainties

include, among others, interpretations or reinterpretations of geologic information, unfavorable exploration results, inability to obtain permits required for future exploration, development or production, general economic conditions and conditions affecting the industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory requirements and approvals; and fluctuating mineral and commodity prices. Additional information regarding the factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements is available in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015. The Company assumes no obligation to update any of the information contained or referenced in this press release.

Barrick safety and rescue workers build skills, bond at Global Mine Rescue Summit Press Release from Barrick| www.barrickbeyondborders.com

It was a nightmare scenario. A truck carrying hazardous materials struck a bus in Carson City, Nevada. The bus slammed into an SUV carrying a young family and the SUV plowed into an office building.

Workers in the building’s top floors were cut off. A pregnant woman went into labor, a utilities worker working nearby was trapped underground and scores of injured, many traumatically, pleaded for help.

It was a nightmare scenario—but thankfully, it wasn’t real.

The multi-casualty incident was a simulation marking the culmination of an intense week of training at Barrick’s recent Global Mine Rescue Summit in Reno and Carson City. More than 60 safety and rescue workers from Barrick mines around the world participated. They spent the first several days training in different emergency response situations, including a structural collapse, search and extraction, vehicle extrications, hazmat response, high-angle rope rescue and firefighting.

On the fourth day, they put their skills to the test in the multi-casualty scenario. Vehicles from a local salvage yard were used to create a realistic scene. >>

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRICK

Balls of fire, some 30 to 40 feet high, illuminated the sky during night firefighting training.

38 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRICK

Cortez General Manager Matt Gili gears up for night firefighter training.

Volunteers role-played the injured. Make-up was used to simulate puncture wounds and burns. Carson Fire Station 52, where the multi-casualty incident training took place, even has a six-story building which allowed teams to perform high-angle rope rescues.

“An incident like this is the last thing we ever want to see, but we believe it’s better to be prepared,” says Barrick Vice President of Safety and Health, Craig Ross. “Barrick, in supporting this event, once again underscored its full commitment to the highest level of emergency readiness.”

This was Barrick’s third Global Mine Rescue Summit, Ross says, noting that he’s unaware of any other mining company that has supported just one event of this scale, let alone three. Mine rescue workers volunteer for the job in addition to their regular duties, Ross adds. Many spend con-

siderable time off hours raising their skills to professional level standards. The summit was an opportunity to further enhance their skills and for Barrick to let its mine rescue workers know how much their commitment is appreciated. Ross credited Barrick Chief Operating Officer Richard Williams for championing the event.

“When Richard met with our mine rescue people, saw their commitment and heard we hadn’t held a global summit since 2011, he told me to do it,” he says.

During the event, the teams found time to help refurbish a school in Reno. In just several hours, crews repaired fencing, landscaped and refreshed courtyard areas, cleaned and painted the bleachers and tennis court areas and helped with several other projects to restore the Vaughn Middle School.

“Our school is 60 years old and has been in great need >> MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing - 39

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRICK

Marco Romo rappels down a six-story building in preparation for a high angle rope rescue. Romo is a lab technician at the Goldstrike mine.

40 - MINING • FALL 2016, an October 2016 publication of Winnemucca Publishing

of repairs and beautification,” the school’s Principal, Victoria Roybal, said in a statement.

“This gift of time, resources, and labor was a giant step towards our goal of making our learning environment match the high level of instruction our teachers and staff provide our scholars.”

The Global Mine Rescue Summit took place from September 12-16 and was organized by the Cortez mine.

Cortez’s Kevin Jessop, General Supervisor, Industrial Hygiene & Emergency Response, and Senior Emergency Response Coordinators Rich Maier and Jeff Freeman led the effort.

“We were honored to be selected as event coordinators,” Jessop says. “The training was incredible and we saw immense team building. Every rescuer will take new knowledge back to their sites to help us move one step closer to our goal of being best in class >>

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRICK

Global Mine Rescue Summit participants after night firefighting training. for emergency response globally.”

On the final day of training, the teams participated in night firefighting exercises. Conditions mirroring industrial fires, petroleum fires and car fires were created.

As the training began, balls of fire, some 30 to 40 feet high, illuminated the sky on a full-moon night. “I love this,” says Karl Overing, Senior Specialist, Emergency Response at the Porgera mine in Papua

New Guinea, after helping his team hose down a car fire. “But I also respect it.

Fighting a fire is serious business.”

Matt Gili, General Manager of Cortez, attended the exercise, as did Goldstrike General Manager Bill MacNevin and Turquoise Ridge General Manager Nigel Bain.

Gili and MacNevin took turns extinguishing a fire. “That was exhilarating,” Gili says afterwards. “Knowing you’re around

these trained people was comforting, but that was a big fire.”

Barrick mines are typically located hundreds of kilometers from large cities, so their rescue teams are often the only readily available emergency services in the area, Freeman says. “We’re our own little city and we have a moral responsibility to make sure we take care of our communities.” >>

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That desire to help is ever present. On the day of the night firefighting exercises, several summit participants were at a gas station when they noticed a man, clearly in distress, trying to tape an injured hand. The team offered to help and their offer was gratefully accepted.

They taped the man’s hand and advised him to go to the hospital as his hand may have been broken. “Our people don’t talk about this type of thing too much, but it happens all the time,” Maier says.

For Gabriel Lopez, a mechanic at Cortez, the summit was a great opportunity to connect with colleagues from Latin America. “It was awesome,” he says. “I learned a lot from them. They don’t have (safety and rescue) courses like we have. They study books, watch videos and practice and practice and practice.

I just wish the rest of the team spoke Spanish so they could fully appreciate the knowledge

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRICK

One of the final training exercises at the summit was a simulation of a multi-casualty incident.

The exercise was made to look and feel as real as possible. Volunteers, such as the man on the stretcher board, role-played traumatic injury victims. “An incident like this is the last thing we ever want to see, but we believe it’s better to be prepared,” says Barrick Vice President of Safety and Health, Craig Ross. these guys have.”

The summit concluded with a celebration of team and individual accomplishments at a

closing banquet and awards presentation. Matt Gili closed the event. “From my standpoint, it was wonderful to see

the camaraderie, wonderful to see the teamwork. Thank you for being who you are. Thank you for being one Barrick.”

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